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Sistine Chapel by Giuseppe Longo
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 The
Sistine Chapel (Italian: Cappella Sistina) is a chapel in the Apostolic
Palace, the official residence of the Roman Catholic Pope in the Vatican
City. The Sistine Chapel originally served as a Palatine Chapel. The chapel
is rectangular in shape and measures 40.93 meters long by 13.41 meters
wide, i.e. the exact dimensions of the Temple of Solomon, as given in the
Old Testament. It is 20.70 meters high and is roofed by a flattened barrel
vault, with little side vaults over the centered windows. The architectural
plans were made by Baccio Pontelli and the construction work was supervised
by Giovannino de' Dolci. The first Mass in the Sistine Chapel was celebrated
on August 9, 1483. Its decoration, frescoed thoroughout by the greatest
Renaissance artists, including Michelangelo, whose ceiling is legendary;
and its purpose, as a site of papal religious and functionary activity,
notably the conclave, at which a new Pope is selected.
History Built between 1475
and 1483, in the time of Pope Sixtus IV della Rovere, Its basic feature
is the papal function, as the pope's chapel and the location of the elections
of new popes. It was consecrated and dedicated to the Assumption of the
Virgin on 15th August 1483. The architectural plans were made by Baccio
Pontelli and the construction was supervised by Giovannino de'Dolci. Later
alterations modified the original exterior.
In 1481 Pope Sixtus IV summoned
to Rome the Florentine painters Sandro Botticelli, Domenico Ghirlandaio
and Cosimo Rosselli, as well as the Perugian Pietro Perugino to decorate
the walls with frescoes. (According to Vasari, Luca Signorelli was also
involved in the decoration.) The painting of the walls took place over
an astonishingly short period of time, barely eleven months, from July,
1481 to May, 1482. The ceiling was frescoed by Piero Matteo d'Amelia with
a star-spangled sky.
Michelangelo was commissioned
by Pope Julius II della Rovere in 1508 to repaint the ceiling; the work
was completed between 1508 and 1512. He painted the Last Judgement over
the altar, between 1535 and 1541, being commissioned by Pope Paul III Farnese.
For great ceremonial occasions
the lowest portions of the side walls were covered with a series of tapestries
depicting events from the Gospels and the Acts of the Apostles. These were
designed by Raphael and woven in 1515-19 at Brussels.
The building in some respects
can be considered a personal monument to the Della Rovere family, since
Sixtus IV saw to its actual construction and the frescoes beneath the vaults,
and his nephew Julius II commissioned the ceiling decoration. Oak leaves
and acorns abound, heraldic symbols of the family whose name means literally
“from the oak”.
The decoration of the chapel
was cleaned and restored in recent decades. The project started with the
fifteenth century frescoes in 1965. The restoration of the lunettes, the
vault and the Last Judgment started in 1980 and was terminated in 1994.
The restoration produced a spectacular result.
Location Viale Vaticano -
00165 00120 Città del Vaticano
Frescoes
Wall Frescoes
The walls are divided into
three orders by horizontal cornices; according to the decorative program,
the lower of the three orders was to be painted with fictive "tapestries,"
the central one with two facing cycles - one relating the life of Moses
(left wall) and the other the Life of Christ (right wall), starting from
the end wall, where the altar fresco, painted by Perugino, depicted the
Virgin of the Assumption, to whom the chapel was dedicated. The upper order
is endowed with pilasters that support the pendentives of the vault. Above
the upper cornice are situated the lunettes. Between each window below
the lunettes, in fictive niches, run images of the first popes - from Peter
to Marcellus - who practiced their ministry in times of great persecution
and were martyred.
Alterwall
The pictorial programme for
the chapel was comprised of a cycle each from the Old and New Testament
of scenes from the lives of Moses and Christ. The narratives began at the
altar wall. Michelangelo began work on the large fresco on the altar wall
in 1534, in the reign of Pope Paul III, when he was 59. As a counterpart
to
his depiction of the Creation on the ceiling he painted on this wall the
final scene in the story of the world, the Last Judgment, depicting Christ
returning as the Judge to summon the righteous to paradise and consign
the damned to hell. The theme in all its details is based on the scriptural
account. With its dramatic presentation of his subject, which Michelangelo
sees as a judgment on the life of the individual human being, this ranks
as one of the greatest achievements of European painting.
Right Wall
The right-hand wall of the
Sistine Chapel depicts events in the life of Christ, the liberator of mankind
from sin - his baptism in the Jordan; the cleansing of lepers (a magnificent
work by Botticelli); the calling of Peter and Andrew; the Sermon on the
Mount; Christ giving the keys to Peter; and the Last Supper.
Left-hand Wall
The left-hand wall of the
Sistine Chapel has scenes from the life of Moses, liberator of the Jewish
people from their captivity in Egypt; the circumcision of Moses; Moses
with the shepherds and the burning bush; the crossing of the Red Sea; Moses
receiving the tablets of the law on Mount Sinai; the destruction of the
company of Korah; and the death of Moses.
 The
ceiling frescoes
The frescoes on the ceiling
of the Sistine Chapel were painted by Michelangelo in the reign of the
great Pope and Renaissance prince Julius II, most of them being his own
unaided work. They were painted between the autumn of 1508 and August 1510
and, after a pause, completed in 1511-12. Michelangelo's idea was an ambitious
one, never attempted on such a scale before; no less than to depict the
Creation as it is described in Genesis.
The central part of the ceiling
of the Sistine Chapel (beginning at the near end) depicts God separating
light from darkness, creating the sun and the moon, separating land and
sea, creating Adam and then Eve; the Fall; Noah's thank-offering; the Flood;
Noah's drunkenness. In the lower ranges of the vaulting are colossal figures
of the prophets and sibyls who conveyed God's message to the Jews and the
Gentiles.
The Last Judgment
The Last Judgment was commissioned
from Michelangelo by Pope Clement VII (1523-1534) shortly before his death.
His successor, Paul III Farnese (1534-1549). forced Michelangelo to a rapid
execution of this work, the largest single fresco of the century.
In the Last Judgment Christ
is depicted as a powerful youthful god standing on a cloud, surrounded
by the Virgin, the Apostles and other saints. The righteous (to the left)
rising up into heaven, and the damned (on the right) tumbling into hell
form a powerful upward and downward movement which determines the eternal
fate of mankind, while below the dead are seen rising from their graves.
In the middle are angels blowing their trumpets to summon all men to judgment,
and up above other angels carry in triumph the instruments of the Passion.
The 381 figures are represented with athletic forms, and many of them have
readily recognizable attributes (Peter with his key, Sebastian with his
arrows, Lawrence with his gridiron, Bartholomew with his flayed skin, which
bears a portrait of Michelangelo himself, Catherine with her wheel).
Conclave
The election of a new Pope,
the conclave takes place in the Sistine Chapel. In those occasions a chimney
is installed in the roof of the chapel, from which the smoke arises. If
white smoke appears, a new Pope has been elected. Black smoke: no successful
election yet. During present-day meetings of cardinals, the chapel is carefully
searched for bugs, recorders and cameras, so that the conclave is kept
secret.
Useful numbers Musei
Vaticani e Cappella Sistina Tel. 06.69884947 - Fax 06.69885061
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About the Author: Giuseppe
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| St
Peter's Basilica Travel Guide by Giuseppe Longo
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The Basilica of Saint Peter,
officially known in Italian as the Basilica di San Pietro in Vaticano and
colloquially called Saint Peter's Basilica, ranks second among the four
major basilicas of Rome (St John Lateran, St Peter's, Santa Maria Maggiore
and St Paul outside the Walls). It is the most prominent building inside
the Vatican City. Begun by Pope Julius II in 1506 and completed in 1615
under Paul V. It is designed as a three-aisled Latin cross with a dome
at the crossing, directly above the high altar, which covers the shrine
of St. Peter the Apostle. Ancient tradition holds that his tomb is below
the baldachino and altar; for this reason, many Popes, starting with the
first ones, have been buried there.
 Location
Take Linea A (red line) toward Battistini and exit at Ottaviano-S. Pietro.
Walk south on Via Ottaviano toward St. Peter's Square. Walking - From the
city center, the most direct route is to cross the Tiber and walk straight
up Via Conciliazioni. A more interesting route is to go under the Passetto
arch near Castel S. Angelo and walk up Pio Borgo, providing a more dramatic
entrance from the right (north) side of the Piazza.
History
The idea of building the
church was conceived by Pope Nicholas V (reigned 1447–55), who was prompted
by the state in which he found Old St. Peter's Basilica—walls leaning far
out of the perpendicular and frescoes covered with dust. In 1452 Nicholas
ordered Bernardo Rossellino to begin the construction of a new apse west
of the old one, but the work stopped with Nicholas's death. Paul II, however,
entrusted the project to Giuliano da Sangallo in 1470.
On April 18, 1506, Julius
II laid the first stone for the new basilica. It was to be erected in the
form of a Greek cross according to the plan of Donato Bramante. On Bramante's
death (1514) Leo X commissioned as his successors Raphael, Fra Giocondo,
and Giuliano da Sangallo, who modified the original Greek-cross plan to
a Latin cross with three aisles separated by pillars. The architects after
Raphael's death in 1520 were Antonio da Sangallo the Elder, Baldassarre
Peruzzi, and Andrea Sansovino.
After the sack of Rome in
1527, Paul III (1534-49) entrusted the undertaking to Antonio da Sangallo
the Younger, who returned to Bramante's plan and erected a dividing wall
between the area for the new basilica and the eastern part of the old one,
which was still in use. On Sangallo's death (1546) Paul III commissioned
the aged Michelangelo as chief architect, a post he held under Julius III
and Pius IV. At the time of Michelangelo's death in 1564, the drum for
the massive dome was practically complete. He was succeeded by Pirro Ligorio
and Giacomo da Vignola. Gregory XIII (1572–85) placed Giacomo della Porta
in charge of the work. The dome, modified from Michelangelo's design, was
finally completed at the insistence of Sixtus V (1585–90), and Gregory
XIV (1590–91) ordered the erection of the lantern above it. Clement VIII
(1592–1605) demolished the apse of Old St. Peter's and erected the new
high altar over the altar of Calixtus II.
Paul V (1605–21) adopted
Carlo Maderno's plan, giving the basilica the form of a Latin cross by
extending the nave to the east, thus completing the 615-foot- (187-metre-)
long main structure. Maderno also completed the facade of St. Peter's and
added an extra bay on each end to support campaniles. Although Maderno
left designs for these campaniles, only one was built, and that was of
a different design executed by Gian Lorenzo Bernini in 1637. Under the
commission of Alexander VII (1655–67) Bernini designed the elliptical piazza,
outlined by colonnades, that serves as the approach to the basilica.
St Peters Tomb
On December 23, 1950, in
his pre-Christmas broadcast on radio, Pope Pius XII announced the discovery
of Saint Peter's tomb far below the high altar of St. Peter's Basilica
in the Vatican. This was the culmination of 10 years of archaeological
research under the crypt of the basilica, carried out by two Jesuit archaeologists
and their colleagues. Monsignor Ludwig Kaas, the administrator of St. Peter's,
had overall authority over the project and reported about it directly to
the Pope himself.
Between 1939 and 1949 this
team had uncovered an impressive complex of mausoleums under the foundations
of the church, dating to the 2nd and 3rd centuries. From their perspective
the most spectacular find was, beyond doubt, the small monument under the
present altar of the church which, all evidence suggests, was built as
early as AD 160 to mark the tomb of St. Peter below it. Little did they
know what a bizarre episode in Christian archaeology lay ahead of them.
Although the scant remains of bones found in the tomb were initially identified
as those of a man in his late sixties, more extensive study later revealed
that they actually belonged to an older man, a younger man, a woman, a
pig, a chicken, and a horse.
In 1942 Monsignor Kaas made
a visit, he had noticed this second tomb in the monument, newly uncovered
but yet unopened, and he ordered the workman accompanying him to open it.
The tomb was not empty, and convinced that this was yet another burial
that would soon be desecrated by the Jesuit archaeologists, Kaas ordered
that the remains be removed and stored for safekeeping. Guarducci discovered
these events by pure chance, and by that time Kaas had died. So when Paul
VI, a family friend of the Guarduccis, was elected pope, she informed him
of her belief that in fact these remains were the true remains of Peter.
The bones were found where Kaas had stored them and when testing revealed
that they did indeed belong to a man in his sixties, Paul VI officially
announced, on June 26th 1968, that the relics of St. Peter had been discovered.
The Dome The dome, or cupola,
was designed by Michelangelo, who became chief architect in 1546. At the
time of his death (1564), the dome was finished as far as the drum, the
base on which a dome sits. The dome was vaulted between 1585 and 1590 by
the architect Giacomo della Porta with the assistance of Domenico Fontana,
who was probably the best engineer of the day. Fontana built the lantern
the following year, and the ball was placed in 1593.
As
built, the double dome is brick, 42.3 metres (138.8 ft) in interior diameter
(almost as large as the Pantheon), rising to 120 metres (394 ft) above
the floor. The four piers of the crossing that support it are each 18 metres
(59 ft) across. It is not simply its vast scale (136.57 m or 448.06 ft)
from the floor of the church to the top of the added cross) that makes
it extraordinary. Michelangelo's dome is not a hemisphere, but a paraboloid:
it has a vertical thrust, which is made more emphatic by the bold ribbing
that springs from the paired Corinthian columns, which appear to be part
of the drum, but which stand away from it like buttresses, to absorb the
outward thrust of the dome's weight. Above, the vaulted dome rises to Fontana's
two-stage lantern, capped with a spire.
The egg-shaped dome exerts
less outward thrust than a lower hemispheric one (such as Mansart's at
Les Invalides) would have done. The dome conceived by Donato Bramante at
the outset in 1503 was planned to be carried out with a single masonry
shell, a plan discovered to be infeasible. San Gallo came up with the double
shell, and Michelangelo improved upon it. The piers at the crossing, which
were the first masonry to be laid, and which were intended to support the
original dome, were a constant concern, too slender in Bramante's plan,
they were redesigned several times as the dome plans evolved.
The Interior Walking along
the right aisle of the basilica, there are several noteworthy monuments
and memorials. The first is Michelangelo's Pietà, located immediately
to the right of the entrance. Up the aisle is the monument of Queen Christina
of Sweden, who abdicated in 1654 in order to convert to Catholicism. Further
up are the monuments of popes Pius XI and Pius XII, as well as the altar
of St Sebastian. Even further up is the Chapel of the Blessed Sacrament,
which is open during religious services only. Inside it is a tabernacle
on the altar resembling Bramante's Tempietto at San Pietro in Montorio.
Bernini sculpted this gilded bronze tabernacle in 1674. The two kneeling
angels were added later. Further still are the monuments of popes Gregory
XIII (completed in 1723 by Carlo Rusconi) and Gregory XIV.
In the northwestern corner
of the nave sits the statue of St Peter Enthroned, attributed to late 13th
century sculptor Arnolfo di Cambio. The foot of the statue is eroded due
to centuries of pilgrims kissing it. Along the pilasters are niches housing
39 statues of saints who founded religious orders.
Walking down the left aisle
there is the Altar of Transfiguration. Walking down towards the entrance
are the monuments to Leo XI and Innocent XI followed by the Chapel of the
Immaculate Virgin Mary. After that come the monuments to Pius X and Innocent
VIII, then the monuments to John XXIII and Benedict XV, and the Chapel
of the Presentation of the Blessed Virgin. After that comes the Monument
to the Royal Stuarts, directly opposite the one to Maria Clementina Sobieska.
Symmetrically, the two monarchs who gave up their thrones for their Catholic
faith in the 17th century, are honored side by side in the most important
church in Catholicism. Finally, right before the end of the church, is
the Baptistry.
The right transept contains
three altars, of St Wenceslas, St Processo and St Martiniano, and St Erasmus.
The left transept also contains three altars, that of St Peter's Crucifixion,
St Joseph and St Thomas. West of the left transept is the monument to Alexander
VII by Bernini. A skeleton lifts a fold of red marble drapery and holds
an hourglass symbolising the inevitability of death. He is flanked on the
right by a statue representing religion, who holds her foot atop a globe,
with a thorn piercing her toe from the British Isles, symbolizing the pope's
problems with the Church of England.
Over the main altar stands
a 30 metres (98 ft) tall baldachin held by four immense pillars, all designed
by Bernini between 1624 and 1632. The baldachin was built to fill the space
beneath the cupola, and it is said that the bronze used to make it was
taken from the Pantheon. The representation of a chair, part of the sculpture,
is said to contain the remnants of the chair belonging to Saint Peter (It
is also said that it is the largest bronze piece in the world.) Underneath
the baldachin is the traditional tomb of St Peter. In the four corners
surrounding the baldachin are statues of St Helena, St Longinus, St Andrew
and St Veronica. Each of these statues represents a relic associated with
the person, respectively, a piece of The Cross, the Spear of Destiny, St
Andrew's head (as well as part of his cross) and Veronica's Veil. In 1964,
St Andrew's head was returned to the Greek Orthodox Church by the Pope.
It should be noted that the Vatican makes no claims as to the authenticity
of several of these relics, and in fact other Catholic churches also possess
"the same" relics. Along the base of the inside of the dome is written,
in letters 2 metres (6.5 ft) high, TV ES PETRVS ET SVPER HANC PETRAM AEDIFICABO
ECCLESIAM MEAM. TIBI DABO CLAVES REGNI CAELORVM (Vulgate, from Matthew
16:18-19; "...you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church. ...
I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven...."). Near the top of
the dome is another, smaller, circular inscription: S. PETRI GLORIAE SIXTVS
PP. V. A. M. D. XC. PONTIF. V. (To the glory of St Peter; Sixtus V, pope,
in the year 1590 and the fifth year of his pontificate). The Burial of
St Petronilla is an altarpiece painted by Giovanni Francesco Barbieri (Guercino)
in 1623. It simultaneously depicts the burial and the welcoming to heaven
of the martyred St Petronilla. The altar is dedicated to the saint, and
contains her relics.
At the apse of the church
is the Triumph of the Chair of Saint Peter (1666) by Bernini, a focus of
the Feast of Cathedra Petri celebrated annually on February 22 in accordance
to the calendar of saints. The triumph is topped by a yellow window in
which is a dove, portraying the Holy Spirit, surrounded by twelve rays,
symbolising the apostles. Beneath it is the bronze encasing of the relic
of the chair of St Peter, given to the Vatican from Charles the Bald in
875. To the right of the chair are St Ambrose and St Augustine (fathers
of the Latin church), and to the left are St Athanasius and St John Chrysostom
(fathers of the Greek church). Further to the right is the monument to
Urban VIII, by Bernini, and further to the left is the monument to Paul
III.
Useful numbers Hours: St.
Peter's Basilica is open daily, Apr-Sep 7:00-19:00; Oct-Mar 7:00-18:00
Sacristy (011) 39 06 6988 3712 Parish Office (011) 39 06 6988 5435 Vatican
Switchboard (011) 39 06 6982
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